Welcome to day 203 of the year! Known as Mango Day as well as Hammock Day and National Ratcatcher’s Day (Pied Piper of Hamelin). If you were born today, you were likely conceived the week of October 29th 2022.
2007 – Torrential rain swept across large parts of the UK. Hull was under water, but the flooding spread around the UK with Warwickshire, Worcestershire and Gloucestershire being some of the counties worst affected.
Todays birthdays
1946 – Danny Glover (77), American actor (Lethal Weapon; Predator 2), and human rights activist, born in San Francisco, California.
1964 – Bonnie Langford [Bonita Melody Lysette “Bonnie” Langford] (59), English actress, dancer and singer, born in Surrey, England.
1965 – Shawn Michaels (58), American pro wrestler (4 x WWF/WWE World Heavyweight Champion; 2 x Royal Rumble winner; 1st WWF Grand Slam Champion; 4th WWF Triple Crown Champion; 2 x WWE Hall of Fame), born in San Antonio, Texas.
1992 – Selena Gomez (31), American actress (Wizards of Waverly Place; Hotel Transylvania), and singer (“Wolves”; “Lose You To Love Me”), born in Grand Prairie, Texas.
2013 – Prince George
(10), the eldest grandchild of King Charles III and second in the line of succession to the British throne behind Prince William, born in London, England.
The day today
1946 – More than a year after the end of World War II, bread was rationed in Britain. The shortage was blamed on a poor harvest and drought.
1997 – Diana, Princess of Wales was among 3,000 people at a Mass in Milan in memory of murdered Italian fashion designer Gianni Versace.
2010 – A luxury Koenigsegg CCXR (one of only six ever made), valued at £1.2m and a £350,000 Lamborghini Murcielago LP670-4 SuperVeloce were clamped outside Harrods in central London after being illegally parked.
2012 – Bradley Wiggins, aged 32, became the first British cylist to win the Tour de France. He finished with a winning margin of 3 minutes and 21 seconds.
2018 – East Fife 4 Forfar 5 was the ultimate football tongue-twister for anyone trying to read out the football results. It became a long standing joke between comedian Eric Morecambe and James Alexander Gordon, voice of the classified football results for 40 years. On Sunday, 22nd July 2018 that result finally happened for the first time in the fixture’s history when the Scottish League Cup Group B tie between the sides went to penalties after a 1-1 draw, leading to East Fife 4 Forfar 5.
Today in music
1967 – Pink Floyd appeared at The Beach Ballroom, Aberdeen, Scotland. The venue is home to one of Scotland’s finest dance floors – famous for its bounce – which floats on fixed steel springs. During the 1960s The Beatles (in 1963), Small Faces and Cream all appeared at the Beach.
1989 – Former actress Martika started a two week run at No.1 on the US singles chart with ‘Toy Soldiers’, a No.5 hit in the UK.
2004 – French singer and guitarist Sacha Distel died after a long battle with deteriorating health. He scored the 1970 UK No.10 single ‘Raindrops Keep Falling On My Head.’ As a professional jazz guitarist he worked alongside Dizzy Gillespie and Tony Bennett.
2005 – Founder member and singer with The Chi-lites, Eugene Record died of cancer. Had the 1972 US No.1 single ‘Oh Girl’ and 1972 UK No.3 single ‘Have You Seen Her.’ He also released three solo albums.
2015 – New research found that a person’s taste in music may offer insight into the way in which they think. A study found empathetic people preferred more mellow, low-energy music, while those who were “systemisers” – people who seeked to analyse patterns in the world enjoyed punk, heavy metal and more complex music overall. Researchers at Cambridge University, England had recruited 4,000 participants and put them through a series of different tests.
Historical events
1298 – The English used longbows for the first time, when they defeated the Scots at the Battle of Falkirk. The Scottish pikemen were cut to pieces by Edward I’s archers.
1706 – The ‘Acts of Union’ were agreed by commissioners from the Kingdom of England and the Kingdom of Scotland, which, when passed by the countries’ Parliaments, led to the creation of the Kingdom of Great Britain.
1797 – Battle of Santa Cruz de Tenerife: Battle between Spanish and British naval forces during the French Revolutionary Wars. During the Battle, Rear-Admiral Nelson is wounded in the arm and the arm had to be partially amputated.
1812 – Napoleonic Wars: Peninsular War: Battle of Salamanca: British forces led by Arthur Wellesley (later the Duke of Wellington) defeat French troops near Salamanca, Spain.
1833 – The Slavery Abolition Act passes in the British House of Commons, initiating the gradual abolition of slavery in most parts of the British Empire.